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From New Colossus to Bristol

This week we share a conversation with Bristol band Adult Leisure, a quick dive into their hometown scene in the 1990s, our latest Song Picks, and a few snapshots from the festival.

Oliver Bouchard, Elke Nominikat

12 Mar 2026 • 8 min read

Adult Leisure at New Colossus Festival (Photo: Elke Nominikat)

During this year’s New Colossus Festival on New York’s Lower East Side, we caught up with Bristol four-piece Adult Leisure between shows. The band played several sets across the week, bringing their energetic indie rock to festival crowds — whether at two in the afternoon or late in the evening.

In our short conversation, the band talked about daytime festival slots, discovering New York’s dive bar culture, and why Bristol remains such a creatively open music city. We even ran into them again the following day, still buzzing from their final festival set.

We started by asking the band about playing daytime festival slots.

Elke: Daytime show, nighttime show — how does it feel? How do you bring the energy?

Neil Scott (vocals):
I think you just see the reason that you’re here. You see the excitement in the room, regardless of whether it’s a daytime show or an evening show. You do what you’re here to do — the thing you love — regardless of the time. Even at two o’clock in the afternoon, people were having a really good time. And we certainly did.

David Woolford (guitar, vocals):
That’s kind of what your job is, isn’t it? You’re a performer. Whether it’s two in the afternoon or ten at night, it’s the same show. Someone might catch that early set, and that’s their experience of you, so they deserve the exact same performance.

Elke:
I hear quite a lot of professionalism in that. When we first met, you, Neil, mentioned the band was partying a bit, but you still had to take care of your voice. I was impressed by that.

Band: Absolutely.

Neil: It’s something we all take into account when preparing for shows.

Luke Denham (bass):
We make sure we’re well rested. It’s quite easy to get carried away — we’re in New York, there are so many things we want to explore. But ultimately, the priority is making sure we’re rested so we can give the best performances.

Nathan Searle (drums):
Definitely. We purposely gave ourselves a couple of days before the shows just to enjoy the city. You can have a drink and have a good time, but when it comes to the show, that’s why we’re here.

Elke: It’s your fourth day in New York now?

Band (laughing): Six! Six days!

Neil: We’re veterans now.

Band: Too much pizza. Way too much pizza.

Elke: I saw on Instagram that someone wanted to go to Rudy’s. Did you make it there?

Luke:
Yes, we did. Nate had been before, and I came about eighteen months ago. It’s this dive bar — about four dollars for a beer and a hot dog. We told Dave and Neil about it, and Dave said, “Right, we need to see what this is about.” But honestly, New York has such a great dive bar culture. It’s interesting to compare it to Bristol and London pub culture.

Neil: Oh, absolutely.

Luke:
In New York, it's much more sociable; people sit at the bar and talk to each other. They want to know where you’re from. It’s actually been really beautiful to see that side of the city.

Elke:
I love hearing that. That was my experience too when I first came to New York — sitting at a bar and chatting with people.

Nathan:
Honestly, yes. You don’t really get that in the UK that much. Maybe in Manchester or somewhere in the north. But New York — that’s what’s blown us away.

David:
In Britain, if you’re out with a group, you can be loud and friendly with everyone. But if you’re on your own, you’ll probably be just left on your own. Here, you’ve got no chance — you start talking to people immediately.

Neil:
If Britain started giving you a hot dog with every beer, I think the culture would improve dramatically.

Luke:
I will say — and this is mostly in Bristol — some pubs give you cheddar cheese and pickles on the table.

Elke: That sounds amazing.

Luke: It’s great… but it’s still not a hot dog.

Elke:
Speaking of Bristol, we don’t know that many bands from there. We hear more about London or Brighton. What’s the music scene like?

Nathan:
Probably the last big thing to come out of Bristol was IDLES. And before that, you had Massive Attack and Portishead — the whole trip-hop scene.

Elke: Very different sounds from what you do.

Nathan: Exactly.

David:
We’re lucky in Bristol. Cities like Manchester or Liverpool have very recognizable sounds. Bristol doesn’t really have one specific sound — it’s just a musical city. That means you can do whatever you want. You’ve got trip-hop, post-punk like IDLES, drum and bass, indie bands — everything. It’s a real smorgasbord of music.

Elke: Sounds like we should visit.

Band: Yes! Absolutely!

Neil: Seriously, Bristol is the best.

David: Don’t waste your time in London.

Luke: We’ll give you a beer and some cheese.

Elke:
That sounds great. I don’t want to keep you any longer. I loved your shows and your debut album, The Things You Don’t Know Yet. We’ll miss your final set — I have to be up very early tomorrow. But good luck in Austin for SXSW. Is there anything you still want people to know?

Neil:
We’ve got a brand new single coming out on March 13 called “The Light You Attract.” It follows our debut album, The Things You Don’t Know Yet, and we’re really excited to start releasing music again. It feels like a great way to head into 2026.

Elke: That’s also the day you play in Austin, right?

David: Yes — we’re doubling up. We’re going to be busy.

Elke: Will you debut the song there?

Band: Ooooooh…

Neil: That would be telling, wouldn’t it?

Elke: Thank you so much.

Band: Thank you!

Adult Leisure’s new single “The Light You Attract” arrives March 13, and you might just hear more about it from us very soon.

Cover Song of the Week: Jes - Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Covering a song that everybody knows so well requires a special creative spark. LA-based singer, songwriter, and producer JES adds her EDM production chops to Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” keeping the sunny vibes while adding urgency. It is also interesting to hear how synth-pop has evolved in the last 41 years.

Five Songs: The Bristol Sound

Listen to glamglare five songs on Spotify, Apple Music, or below on YouTube.

While Bristol today has a diverse music scene, it is best known for the Bristol sound of the 1990s, an electronic music genre that blended hip-hop beats, dub basslines, and soulful vocals and became known worldwide as trip-hop.

“Unfinished Sympathy” by Massive Attack was probably many people’s first experience with the new sound, not least because of the stunning one-take video that shows singer Shara Nelson walking along a busy street. For logistical reasons, the clip was filmed with hired actors in Los Angeles.
From their 1997 debut Come From Heaven, released on Massive Attack’s short-lived Melankolic label, Alpha’s music floats in a quieter corner of the Bristol universe. “Nyquil” drifts on soft beats and dreamy electronics, carried by a ghostly vocal that feels suspended somewhere between lullaby and late-night reverie.
When discussing the Bristol sound, you can’t overlook Portishead, named after a seaside town near Bristol. “Wandering Star” allows Beth Gibbons’ fragile, haunting vocals to drift over a heavy dub bassline and sparse beats.
Trip-hop wasn’t the only electronic sound coming out of Bristol in the ’90s. With the 1997 album New Forms, Roni Size and Reprazent brought the city’s drum-and-bass scene to global attention. “Brown Paper Bag,” driven by its unforgettable upright bassline, remains one of the genre’s defining tracks.
We own Big World, Small World by Smith & Mighty on CD, so seeing it listed among the core bands of the Bristol sound brought back memories. “No Justice” immediately stands out with its driving beat and sing-along, socially conscious lyrics.

This Week in glamglare History

No Hot Ashes, Goth Babe, and Avery Friedman

1 year ago: Avery Friedman - Photo Booth

The other day, we passed a photo booth with a long line in front of it. The Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Avery Friedman has an explanation for the appeal of this analog-age device in her song “Photo Booth,” for which she “surrendered to the more chaotic, pop-adjacent production it was asking for.” But don’t stop here and listen to her excellent 2025 album, New Thing.

5 years ago: Goth Babe - I Wanna Help Your Mind

Goth Babe is the forcefully misleading moniker of West Coast musician Griffin Washburn, who creates music in his camper van while enjoying life and raising awareness for good causes. Expect uplifting, sunny vibes in “I Wanna Help Your Mind.” His latest release is the EP Tongass National Forest in fall 2025.

10 years ago: No Hot Ashes - Goose

No Hot Ashes was a Manchester-based quartet creating funky, disco-inspired pop music. “Goose” is a groovy track that instantly gets you moving. They announced an indefinite hiatus on the eve of the pandemic six years ago.

Song Pick of the Day

Hause Plants, Roses, Francis Of Delirium, Gia Margaret, Lukka, Veps, and Melanie Baker

Listen to all seven songs on YouTube, or follow our daily updated Song Pick playlists on YouTube, Apple Music, or Spotify.

Gia Margaret - “Good Friend”
Roses - “Pretty (Like a Sin)”
Veps - “If I Was A Mother”
Hause Plants - “Do It Like This”
Francis of Delirium - “It’s a Beautiful Life”
Melanie Baker - “HAHA!”
Lukka - “Fabric of the Cosmos”

We publish one Song Pick of the Day every day. You can subscribe to receive them by email.

Nine Photos from New Colossus Week

New Colossus week always feels like a whirlwind of discovery. We moved from venue to venue across the Lower East Side and caught artists from all over the world — here are nine moments that stayed with us.